


Thief in the Night

by Akiko_Natsuko



Series: BixFreed [1]
Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Alternate Universe, Chance Meetings, Edolas, Falling In Love, Friendship/Love, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Partners in Crime, Promises
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-08
Updated: 2018-09-08
Packaged: 2019-08-20 19:00:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,920
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16561469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akiko_Natsuko/pseuds/Akiko_Natsuko
Summary: Bickslow had planned on having a quiet life after leaving Fairy Tail, however, that had all changed when a thief had broken into his workshop two years ago.





	Thief in the Night

   Bickslow sighed, pausing long enough to rub a hand across his face before turning his attention back to the intricate pattern he was carving into the back of a chair. He hated jobs like this, even though usually he enjoyed detailed work, and his gaze drifted briefly to the toys covering the far workbench still waiting to be finished so they could go on display in the shop. Still, he was getting paid well for this commission so he couldn’t really complain, and the decorative work was the last bit, and then he could be rid of the blasted thing. With that thought firmly in mind, he turned back to his task with increased enthusiasm, promising himself a day of working on the toys once the job was done. And maybe he could use the jewels he was getting to take Freed out if the younger man put in an appearance today that was, he thought with a sigh, before banishing thoughts of his partner so that he could focus.

   It was dark outside, and he had long since been forced to light some lanterns and activate the lacrima above his workbench so that he could see clearly enough to get the details right, and he was beginning to think about stopping and getting something to eat. He was just carving the last few leaves when there was a loud crash from the main house, and he cursed as the blade slipped and nicked his thumb, hastily he wrapped a scrap of cloth around the cut before rising to his feet. There was hopefully only one person who would be breaking in at this time of night, especially since they’d come in through the house and not the shop or workshop.

“Freed? Is that…?” He trailed off as he stepped into the kitchen, his gaze immediately drawn to the welcome sight of his partner at the table. Welcome, right until he took in the blood staining the left side of Freed’s clothes, and the lines of pain that had tightened the younger man’s face. Freed’s eyes were squeezed shut, his chest rising and falling in a fixed pattern which was enough to tell him that whatever lay beneath his clothes hurt like hell. “What happened?” He demanded as he circled around so that he could drop down beside Freed, ignoring the bulging bag that had been dumped on the floor beside him with the ease of long experience. He probably didn’t want the answer to that question either, he admitted with a sigh even as he reached out with gentle fingers and began to ease the other’s shirt off so that he could look at whatever lay underneath.

“Bix…” Freed’s fingers brushed his wrist for a minute, not trying to stop him, but using the gentle touch to ground himself before turquoise eyes finally opened and focused on him, his lips quirking up in a cheeky smile despite the situation. “The Royal Army seems to have actually done some training for once, and I have a feeling they were expecting me,” he admitted reluctantly, and Bickslow paused and shot him a worried look. However, he had managed to expose the wound and the sight of the deep gash that ran from Freed’s shoulder and down to roughly level with his naval held back his scolding words for now.

“This is bad,” he said instead, knowing better than to try and hide the truth as Freed had always been able to see through his lies. Crimson eyes narrowed with concern as he glanced between the wound and the stairs, not liking the idea of moving the other man, but knowing that it would be easier to treat it and to get the idiot to rest upstairs on the bed. Sighing, he rose to his feet. “Come on I need to get you upstairs so I can deal with this properly.” Freed didn’t look happy with the idea of moving, but he didn’t protest when the older man carefully wrapped an arm around his shoulder and helped ease him to his feet, although he couldn’t stop himself from hissing in pain, shaking his head when Bickslow tried to apologise for hurting him and smiling weakly at him.

“Not…your fault…”

**

   Bickslow sat back with an exhausted sigh and tried not to focus on the blood staining his hands. It had taken them a lot longer than it should have to get Freed up the stairs, the blood loss finally catching up to him, and the younger man had barely been conscious when he’d finally eased him down onto the bed. It had then taken the best part of an hour to clean the wound as he had been dismayed to find that it was full of dirt and splinters, making wonder just what the hell the other man had been up to this time, before finally stitching it shut and bandaging it. There had been other injuries, mainly just bruising although there had been the odd cut here and there which he had carefully cleaned just to be on the safe side. At some point, Freed had passed out, probably a blessing as there was no way that Bickslow wouldn’t have been hurting him with his ministrations. He was a carpenter, not a healer, after all, his lips quirked at that thought, his thoughts drifting back to when he had first met Freed.

_The loud crash followed by cursing had woken Bickslow, and he had shot to his feet when he realised that the noise was coming from the workshop. While he doubted that anything in there had particular value to anyone else, he wasn’t about to let someone break in and run havoc. For once glad for his height and build he had grabbed the poker from beside the fireplace and made a beeline for the door that led from the house to the workshop. He hadn’t tried for stealth, hitting the lacrima by the door and flooding the place with light, the poker held at the ready in case there was attack…_

_There had been no attack. Instead, he found himself staring wide-eyed at the man who was slumped in a pile of wood by the window that he had obviously entered through. Wild green hair, framed a pale face and from what he could see he would guess the man was a little younger than himself. He also seemed to be unconscious, and Bickslow had a feeling that the blood he could see coating one side of his face was responsible for that. He hesitated for a moment before dropping his weapon, waiting to see if there was a reaction to the sound of metal clattering to the floor but the man didn’t stir. He might be a thief or a would-be thief, but there was no way the Carpenter was just going to stand by and leave someone injured this badly alone…and he was reluctant to call on the Royal Army for this, well aware of what kind of punishments awaited criminals, and with a sigh, he headed towards the other man, fairly sure that he was going to end up regretting this at some point._

*

_It had been the next morning before the other man had finally stirred, moaning softly as he reached up to feel his head, coming up short as he felt the bandages wrapped around his head. Bickslow had already been leaning forward, exhausted after a night of watching over the man, unwilling to risk sleeping until he knew whether he was an enemy or not, but he found himself freezing as the man’s eyes flew open. They were a beautiful turquoise that he had never seen before, although they were dulled by pain, and a hint of fear as they flew between him and the rest of the room and he could practically see the man trying to plan an escape route. There was something about the fear in those eyes that tugged at his heart, and he leaned forward to rest a hand on the man’s arm._

_“You’re safe here…”_

   Back then he had never envisioned that those simple words, meant merely as comfort, would make him the unofficial partner in crime for one of the most wanted thieves in Edolas. Freed had disappeared that night, leaving nothing but his name and a quiet thank you in his wake and Bickslow had thought that was the end of it. A thought that had left a strangely hollow feeling in the pit of his stomach, and he had found himself keeping an out for a flash of green hair when he was out and about in the city. However, it was nearly two months before he saw the younger man again. Freed once again breaking into the workshop after a heist gone wrong, only this time he had been left with a broken arm. It had taken a lot of persuading to convince the thief to stay with him while he healed, only capitulating when he realised that he wouldn’t be able to steal with only one working arm.

   Those weeks had been strange, they had danced around one another to start with, but slowly they began to talk. Bickslow talking to Freed about how he had once been with Fairy Tail before the hunts against mages had become too much for him, forcing him to retreat to his childhood home and take up the family business, although every now and then he would pass on information to the guild. In turn, Freed spoke about a childhood on the streets where he had learned the tricks of the trade, but although he had grown up with it, that wasn’t why he stayed a thief. It had stunned the Carpenter to learn that Freed was deliberately targeting nobles and the army, aiming for the magic and magical items they hoarded to ‘protect Edolas’ and passing most of them on to the guilds so that they could fight back. With Fairy Tail being one of his primary customers.

   Eventually, he had healed again, slipping off early once more without even a goodbye, and Bickslow had thought that was it. Right until the thief turned up a few days later, this time uninjured, with a bag of items to be passed on to Fairy Tail and few that could be used in the workshop. It had become a pattern, and Bickslow found himself longing for the days when he would hear the younger man slipping into the house or workshop, although he had eventually given Freed a key to save on repairs. The small smile and a hint of a blush making that a memorable moment, and it had been then that he had realised that for Freed, he was the first real taste of home and stability he’d ever had. It had been a daunting prospect, it was still a daunting prospect even two years on. However, it wasn’t a decision he had ever regretted, and the wry smile became a soft one as he reached up and brushed his fingers through unruly green hair, eyes softening as even in sleep the younger man leant into his touch.

“Just so long as you come back…” He murmured, glancing down at the bandaged wound and trying not to think about just how close this time had been, and he was caught by surprise when Freed reached up to grasp his hand, eyes barely slits as he managed a pained smile for the older man.

“Always…”


End file.
